Literacy in the Junior-Intermediate Grades

Today in my classroom walks, I spent time in our junior and intermediate classes. Specifically, I was in Ms. Brown's, James', Smith's, and Royce's classes. I saw examples of teachers working with small groups, students practicing a skill that they have learned (i.e., summarizing), and working on various language related skills in their literacy centres. Some students were working on the computer while others were working on pencil and paper tasks. I appreciated the focus and direct work of the students and teachers! Take a look at some of the pictures below to get a more clear picture of the tasks that the students were working on.

Winter Concert

Last Thursday, we had our annual Winter Concert. It was a great time. I would like to thank our teachers and students for the great work they put in to make this concert a success. I would like to offer special thanks to Ms. Joo, our music teacher, who put in a great amount of time to prepare our students to perform. I would also like to thank many of our teachers who stayed to supervise their students. Our parent photographers were fully represented! It was a great way to kick off our Holiday Season, and I would like to thank our parents for supporting this event!

Math Learning

As you know, improving our students' ability in math is a focus for us at Boxwood. Today I observed a variety of primary and junior math classes (Ms. Sen, Mr. McQuirter, Ms. Kenwell, Ms. Gardner, and Ms. Malamas). See below to see what they were learning:

In Ms. Sen's Gr. 1/2 class, they were working on shapes and patterning while some other students were working at measuring different items (e.g., a feather) using non-standard units (e.g., paper clip).

In Mr. McQuirter's Gr. 2/3 class, students were working on adding two digit numbers using the strategy of making a number into a friendly number (e.g., instead of adding 54 +49, add 53 + 50). Students tried this on their own and then Mr. Mcquirter led a discussion about different strategies that students used to find the answer. He reinforced the effectiveness of students using this strategy and modelled how to use it.

In Ms. Kenwell's Gr. 3 class, students were working on addition as well. They were practicing using their knowledge of place value to add numbers. She also reviewed some key words that indicate that addition is the required operation in a word problem. To further support the students, she had a place value chart that was available for them to use to organize a number based on place value.

In Ms. Gardner's Gr. 4 class, they were working on deconstructing the different parts of a complete graph (e.g., title, scale, x and y axis...). Students used their background knowledge to identify the different parts and their importance in a graph.

In Ms. Malamas's Gr. 4/5 class, students were engaged in a diagnostic measurement assessment. This is where she is determining the students' skills right now with measurement. Students were asked to draw a line of different lengths and do different conversions.

Learning in Ms. Forth's SK/1 Class

Last Friday, I had an amazing time learning with Ms. Forth's SK/Gr. 1 Class. In language students were learning how to retell a story. Ms. Forth reviewed a story that they read before, The Mitten. They reviewed the success criteria to write an effective retell (e.g., "I can tell the story in the order that I heard it."). They also have success criteria for what makes a good sentence (e.g., "I can start my sentence with an uppercase letter.")

In math, students were working on measuring distances. They learned the importance of having a consistent baseline (i.e., starting point) when comparing distances. Ms. Forth's classroom also demonstrates the learning that has taken place with measuring. The students did a great job!

X Fusion @ Boxwood

We are thrilled to welcome the X MOVEMENT team to our school! Today, our students began participating in the X Fusion experience. X Movement integrates the powerful Connected Movement Approach to Energize our school! X Fusion aims to develop student’s self regulation skills in order for them to discover their own self realization. To achieve this, students partake in sessions designed to increase and decrease their energy levels and model methods/tools/tactics which allow them to regulate by themselves. During the 3 Fusion sessions, we use movements inspired by Yoga as well as high intensity body flows. Both genres of movement focus on similar beliefs of self awareness, intrinsic benefits and discipline over the mind and body.

The Prime Minister's Apology

Yesterday, Prime Minister Trudeau apologized to Jewish Refugees for turning away the MS St. Louis (the boat one of the characters from the book Refugee was on) in 1939. We took all the intermediates to hear the apology live. It was pretty incredible, almost 80 intermediate students silent listening to the wrongs of Canada's past and our current Prime Minister trying to make amends and call youth to action to make Canada better for future people seeking refuge in our country.

Math Learning in Ms. Royce's Class

I recently visited Ms. Royce's class and observed the students engaged in a collaborative open ended question. In pairs, students were asked to, "Construct three similar rectangles, using grid paper or a geoboard, and compare the perimeter and area of the rectangles. Explain and justify your thinking. This is what we call a meaningful problem. This allows students to talk about math and for the teacher to see their thinking. It also provides students a chance to see different ways to solve a problem. Through this problem, Ms. Royce was able to teach the concept of similarity and the relationship of the area and perimeter of rectangular similar figures.

Learning in Ms. Sen's Gr. 1/2 Class

During one of my recent walks, I visited Ms. Sen's class. The artifacts on the wall demonstrated the learning that is taking place in the class. The first picture shows journal writing that the students completed with a picture to help them communicate their ideas.

Journal Writing Samples

In reading, students are learning to make connections to texts that they read. The class has a learning goal and success criteria to show them what they need to do to be successful with this task. They have also discussed how making connections helps them to better understand what they are reading.

Making Connections

In math, they are learning about numbers using ten frames. A ten frame is a simple graphic tool that allows people to “see” numbers. Understanding that numbers are composed of tens and ones is an important foundational concept, setting the stage for work with larger numbers. A strong sense of "ten" is a prerequisite for place-value understanding and mental calculations. This You Tube Video introduces the ten frame and explains how this tool is useful for students just beginning to learn about numbers:

Ten Frame